The Devil's Lullaby
by Skylark Evanson
Summary: A chilling song from Kevin's past has come back when Gwen is holding Devlin. *pretty sad... I'm tearing up just writing it...


**A/N: Yes, I'm a little backlogged lately. Will I be up with new stuff in no time flat? Of course! You want my take on Kevin's past? Yeah, you prob don't care, but here it is just because this popped in my head and I nearly cried when I started to think it all the way through. I don't know if I can ever hear this lullaby again without remembering these lyrics and crying…**

_**"The Devil's Lullaby"**_

He listened to Gwen hum the tune he'd heard a thousand times in his dreams and in his life and in his soul that he'd blocked out. "Please stop," he muttered in his wife's ear, not sure if he could take it or not. They'd haunted him. To hear it again…it was like murder.

"What's wrong?" she asked, her green eyes meeting his dark ones. She could trace the pain in them and reached up to touch his cheek as she sat in the rocking chair holding the tiny baby Devlin in her arms.

Kevin turned away. "Stop singing that." He didn't want to hear it. Ever again. "Please," he added, a bit more nicely.

Not sure, Gwen fell silent. She knew he was still sensitive about some things and decided not to question further. His past was still a mystery to her most of the time and she assumed it was the past that made him act like this. "Kevin, they can't hurt you anymore," she murmured, gesturing for him to come closer.

As he leaned down, he felt her gentle lips against his cheek. "It's alright," he murmured. Then he kissed her back softly. "I'll tell you later. Just not around Dev. He doesn't need to hear it." Kevin left the room, closing the door behind him.

Gwen was shadowed in darkness again. She curled a gray blanket around her son and put him in his crib. "Devlin, what am I going to do about your father?" she sighed before giving him a kiss goodnight. He'd be up in an hour or so, the redhead knew.

Leaving, she saw Kevin in the hall, just waiting for her. His eyes lifted when he heard her latest appearance. "Gwen, sorry about that it's just-"

"Don't worry," she murmured, twining her fingers with his. "I get it."

"Actually, this one you don't," he breathed, kissing her forehead ever so lightly. "This one is probably the worst of everything I've told you, Gwen. It's… It's not like the rest."

Her attention didn't waver from him and she knew he was honestly scared. "It's fine. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." She leaned into him, feeling his strong heartbeat beneath her cheek.

"No." He wrapped his arm around her, making sure she knew he loved her. "I _want_ to tell you. So I know that you won't sing it again."

Feeling his panic setting in deeply, Gwen was unsettled. "Okay, but can we get to bed first?"

"Now." Kevin was making it non-negotiable. This was serious to him.

"But Devlin might hear," she pointed out, remembering what her husband had said to her earlier. "Let's just go to our room and there, alright?" She let her voice fall to soothing levels, hoping it could calm him temporarily so he didn't go into some fit of rage. It had happened before and she would never underestimate the power of his past again.

Kevin only nodded, trying to breathe and held her closer again. "Gwen-"

She wasn't taking no for an answer. The redhead took his hand and pulled him, still keeping their eye contact. "Kevin, I love you. Don't forget that." She collapsed on their bed, falling backwards, still holding his hands. Gwen let the stress run from her body and she could relax and be at peace with world with her son silent for the first time in a while. "Now what has got you totally in pieces over this? It's just a lullaby."

"No, it's not," he told her, sitting down, his heart still knotted with the pain. "My mom used to call it'The Devil's Lullaby'. She had different words to it. I'd hear it every night and hope that she never meant it. She said she made it up for me."

Gwen knew this wasn't a joke. She'd heard the worst from him. The drowning, the cutting, the choking, and everything all induced by his stepfather's influence. His mother really loved him, but she didn't know how to overpower the man she'd married and divorce wasn't an option. "'The Devil's Lullaby'?" Gwen asked, sitting up.

His closed his eyes, trying to fight back the pain the memories could cause. "It was really bad, Gwen. I never wanted to hear it again, but when you sang it, I couldn't- I couldn't take it."

She decided to go further. "How bad, Kevin?" she asked, putting an arm around him and holding him tightly.

"It-"

"Just sing it," Gwen said, giving his hand an encouraging little squeeze.

Those words sent shivers down his spine. "It's bad, Gwen," he said one last time.

"You said you wanted to tell me."

"But I don't want it to hurt you too," he muttered, letting his lips graze her cheek. "You don't know what it's like."

Gwen searched his brown and black eyes. "Please. I don't like seeing you this way." He had an abused look about him. His aura was cold and lifeless and his vision was clouded over, she could tell. The sound of his breathing was harsher and the hair on his arm was standing straight up. "It scares me," she whispered, making sure that they were quiet so not to wake up the baby in the other room.

Kevin felt one last shudder seal it. She had to know. He felt his lips go dry before he started, knowing it would sound terrible, just the lyrics alone.

"_Hush little devil, don't say a word,_

_Momma's gonna buy you a mocking bird._

_If that mocking bird don't kill,_

_Momma's gonna stab you with it's beak._

_That beak won't kill alien freak._

_Instead she'll push you down a well._

_Or maybe in the fiery pits of Hell._

_If Hell don't burn you to ash,_

_Momma could sell you for lots of cash."_

Gwen felt her heart shatter. "She really…"

He nodded and felt the moisture prick his eyes. "She did. I know she never meant it…" His voice was cracking dangerously and he flexed his hand, finding that his nails had dug tiny slits in his palm.

Feeling his pain, the redheaded woman wrapped her arms around her husband's neck and murmured words of love in his ear. She knew it would calm him. She knew he would relax with her touch. Gwen could help him. That was what she was meant to do.

Kevin only leaned into her, the tears sliding down his cheeks, leaving tiny trails behind. "Now you know why I didn't want to hear it."

She leaned up and kissed him, making sure he felt every inch of her love. "Kevin, no one will ever hurt you. Never. I won't let them. Neither will Ben. He knows how bad it is." Gwen ran a finger over his cheek, tracing aimless patterns there. "You are perfect and no one will ever change that."

Knowing she spoke the truth, Kevin kissed her back, keeping her close against him.

A cry came from the other room, loud and wailing.

Gwen leaned back on the bed, her emerald orbs disappeared behind her eyelids. "Dev, can't you sleep for an hour?"

Kevin put his hand in hers. "I've got him, Gwen. Get some rest."

She felt his reassurance. "Are you sure?" She knew he was totally capable, but after that? Kevin was prone to frequent break downs and Devlin had pretty much stretched the limits. "He's not easy."

"Because he's a fighter, like his mom," Kevin whispered, kissing his wife once more and heading out of their room.

She only listened as Devlin fell silent in a matter of moments and her husband was back by her side. Kevin was calmer, knowing he had a family now. "Gwen?" he asked.

"What'd you do to quiet him down?" she wondered, pulling her messy hair down for the night. She'd curled up in bed.

"I sang him your lullaby." Kevin climbed in bed beside his wife. "He seemed to like yours a lot better than I ever liked mine," he said softly.

Gwen snuggled into his chest. "Thank you," she breathed, feeling the sleep washing over her and wearing away at her consciousness.

He let his lips graze her forehead and hair once more, pulling her closer, and running his fingers through her hair. "Love you, Gwen." She didn't reply, but he knew she was fast asleep. He closed his eyes and let the darkness take over.

Devlin would be up in an hour and they'd need all the sleep they could get.

**A/N: I'm still kind of teary after that. I never thought it'd turn out this good… Devlin has just as bad of timing as Ben does… you'll see more of him soon. Hope you liked it. Leave a review!**

**~Sky**


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